Evolution: Jeff Resnick's Backstory: The Jeff Resnick Mysteries

A prequel to the nationally best-selling Jeff Resnick Mysteries, this collection of short stories chronicles Jeff's (and his brother, Richard Albert's) backstory. What forces molded these men into the people they are today? Find out in these 11 thought-provoking tales that span from Jeff and Richard's first meeting until two years before the first book in the series, Murder on the Mind. These stories are not mysteries.

1st to Die: The Women's Murder Club, Book 1

The 1st novel in James Patterson's Women's Murder Club series. As the only woman homicide inspector in San Francisco, Lindsay Boxer has to be tough. But nothing she has seen prepares her for the horror of the honeymoon murders, when a brutal maniac begins viciously slaughtering newlywed couples on their wedding nights. Lindsay is sickened by the deaths, but her determination to bring the murderer to justice is threatened by her own personal tragedy.

Fire and Ice: A Liam Campbell Mystery

In this mystery series by Dana Stabenow, the Edgar Award-winning author returns to the Alaskan setting she's famous for, with a wonderful character - state trooper Liam Campbell. Liam's just been transferred from Anchorage to the small fishing village of Newenham, Alaska - where a local pilot seems to have lost his head.

Private

Jack Morgan is a war hero. Returning home from Afghanistan after being wounded, Jack is called into California State Prison to visit his father, Tom, who is serving a life sentence for extortion and murder. Before being incarcerated, Tom ran a private investigation firm called 'Private'. Tom wants Jack to re-start the company, to make it great again, and gives him access to a $15 million dollar account in the Cayman Islands to do it with.

The Bone Collector

New York City is thrown into chaos by the assaults of the Bone Collector, a serial kidnapper and killer who gives the police a chance to save his victims from death by leaving obscure clues. The cops go to Lincoln Rhyme, an ex-NYPD forensics expert left paralysed after an accident on the job. Rhyme reluctantly postpones his ambitions towards suicide and puts together a forensic investigation team, enlisting as his eyes and ears young police officer Amelia Sachs.

The Crossing Places

When she's not digging up bones or other ancient objects, Ruth Galloway lectures at the University of North Norfolk. She lives happily alone in a remote place called Saltmarsh overlooking the North Sea and, for company; she has her cats Flint and Sparky, and Radio 4. When a child's bones are found in the marshes near an ancient site that Ruth worked on ten years earlier, Ruth is asked to date them.

Angels and Demons

World-renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is summoned to a Swiss research facility to analyze a cryptic symbol seared into the chest of a murdered physicist. What he discovers is unimaginable: a deadly vendetta against the Catholic Church by a centuries-old underground organization, the Illuminati. Desperate to save the Vatican from a powerful time bomb, Langdon joins forces in Rome with the beautiful and mysterious scientist Vittoria Vetra.

Dark Paradise

New Eden, Montana, is a piece of heaven on earth where one woman died in her own private hell. Now it's up to ex-court reporter Marilee Jennings to decipher the puzzle of her best friend's death. But someone has a stake in silencing her suspicion. Someone with secrets worth killing for - and the power to turn this beautiful haven into a...dark paradise.

Holy Island: The DCI Ryan Mysteries, Book 1

Detective Chief Inspector Ryan retreats to Holy Island seeking sanctuary when he is forced to take sabbatical leave from his duties as a homicide detective. A few days before Christmas, his peace is shattered, and he is thrust back into the murky world of murder when a young woman is found dead amongst the ancient ruins of the nearby priory. When former local girl Dr. Anna Taylor arrives back on the island as a police consultant, old memories swim to the surface, making her confront her difficult past.

The Blackhouse

The Isle of Lewis is the most desolate and harshly beautiful place in Scotland. When a bloody murder on the island bears the hallmarks of a similar slaying in Edinburgh, police detective Fin Macleod is dispatched north to investigate. Since Fin himself was raised on the island, the investigation represents not only a journey home but a voyage into his past. Each year twelve island men sail out to a remote and treacherous rock called An Sgeir on a perilous quest to slaughter nesting seabirds.

Memory Man

Amos Decker is a former professional football player whose career was ended by a terrible hit. Now a police detective, Amos is still haunted by a side effect from the accident he can never forget. One night Decker comes home from a stakeout to find his wife, young daughter, and brother-in-law horrifically murdered. Obviously scarred and nearly broken, Decker has to use his skills as a detective and his unusual brain capacity to try to catch the monster who killed his family.

The Mountain Man Omnibus: Books 1-3

Boomstick. Samurai bat. Motorcycle leather. And the will to live among the unliving. Augustus Berry lives a day-to-day existence comprised of waking up, getting drunk, and preparing for the inevitable day when "they" will come up the side of his mountain and penetrate his fortress. Living on the outskirts of a city and scavenging for whatever supplies remain after civilization died two years ago, Gus knows that every time he goes down into undead suburbia could be his last.

Publisher's Summary

Eighteen months ago, Aleut Kate Shugak quit her job investigating sex crimes for the Anchorage DA's office and retreated to her father's homestead in a national park in the interior of Alaska. But the world has a way of beating a path to her door, however remote. In the middle of one of the bitterest Decembers in recent memory ex-boss - and ex-lover - Jack Morgan shows up with an FBI agent in tow. A Park ranger with powerful relatives is missing, and now the investigator Jack sent in to look for him is missing, too.

Reluctantly, Kate, along with Mutt, her half-wolf, half-husky sidekick, leaves her wilderness refuge to follow a frozen trail through the Park, twenty thousand square miles of mountain and tundra sparsely populated with hunters, fishermen, trappers, mushers, pilots and homesteaders. Her formidable grandmother and Native chief, Ekaterina Shugak, is - for reasons of her own - against Kate's investigation; her cousin, Martin, may be Kate's prime suspect; and the local trooper, Jim Chopin, is more interested in Kate than in her investigation. In the end, the sanctuary she sought after five and a half years in the urban jungles may prove more lethal than anything she left behind in the city streets of Anchorage.

State of suspense: listen to more Alaskan mysteries in the Kate Shugak series.

Awful. I have given up on only two books in my life; and this is the 2nd. I really, really don't care about the method of heating for a shack in a native village in Alaska or how housing is transported, I certainly do not want a 5 minute description of each; just give me the story! Is there one? I'm in chapter 4 and NOTHING that is not on the front cover, has happened.

Absolutely no depth to the story or any of the characters. There was no suspense, no build up, no tension, the story just trotted along aimlessly then ended. Had it been longer, I would never have finished it.

What didn’t you like about Marguerite Gavin’s performance?

It was ok. I can't blame the narrator for the boring story.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from A Cold Day for Murder?

All of it. The story was just too weak. Most of the story was filling, linking together a few uninteresting events.

Any additional comments?

The synopsis is the most interesting part of this book. For a book that was only 5.5 hours, I nearly gave up after 3 hours thinking that the story was going nowhere, but I thought as I was over half way, I would plough through. I had to force myself to listen to the last hour, including the big (or not so big) reveal, so I could write a fair review. Normally when I reach the last hour of a book, I am listening anywhere and everywhere. I listened to the last 10 minutes, purely to delete it and move on to the next book.

I have been waiting until all Stabenow's books are in audible format, so I have "read" some of the latter books before this one. This book was not as complex, but it is great to get to know the characters from the beginning. Gavin's performance is, as usual, top notch.

One inconsistency, though, is the variation in the story of the how Kate received her throat scar. In "Though Not Dead", the 4 year old was a random victim, whereas in this (first) of the series, the victim was the child of the perpetrator. This does not diminish from the impact of the book, however -- it must be difficult to keep facts consistent over the course of more than a dozen novels.

The best character in the story is Alaska itself. Stabenow takes you there and it is a fun trip. Also love the partnership between Kate and her dog, Mutt.

Please make ALL of Stabenow's books available!

14 of 15 people found this review helpful

Mike Murphy

Switzerland

03/09/12

Overall

Performance

Story

"Good characters. Story showing its age"

I'm one of those folks who has to go back to the begining of a series. In this case the downside of that was that this story starts to feel a little slow and a little old fashioned, although I'm sure it was leading edge when it was published.

The book has a strong sense of place and some deeply (although not subtly) carved characters who make you care what happens to them,

The plot is complicated enough to be interesting with being annoyingly clever.

Perhaps I'm just not used to the accent but I was distracted by the fact that the reader placed stresses in unexpected places. She did dialogue well but the descriptive pieces lacked focus. It seemed her voice needed a little more range.

I will continue with this series on audible.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Patricia

Perkasie, PA, United States

19/03/12

Overall

Performance

Story

"Hooked by the Alaska connection"

A fan of mystery/detective stories all my life, I've been looking for a new (to me) author/series to listen to. The Alaska setting drew me to Dana Stabenow and Kate Shugak. While a little short of compelling, I found the story interesting and the characters well-defined. I found myself drawn into their lives and caring about what happens to them. I'm going to try another in the series.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Ginger

Shelton, WA, United States

20/12/11

Overall

Performance

Story

"the 1st of the Kate Shugak series AAA+++"

Love this series! have been reading these for over a decade and I have yet to tire of them. I encourage you to look into Dana Stabenow 's other books!

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Rusty

Georgia

29/08/16

Overall

Performance

Story

"Kate & Mutt Kick Ass"

When I recently listened to A Cold day for Murder for about the 10th time, I realized that Dana Stabenow is simply a genius. The character of Kate is strong, engaging, self-sufficient, funny and relentless. She may be burnt out from 5 years of protecting Alaskan children from physical & sexual abuse, but she isn't whining or looking for a man to rescue her.

Kate (about 30) was a breath of fresh air; a truly mature adult female in contrast to the wimpy young bimbos so popular in current fiction. I had a good laugh imaging some alpha jerk attempting to dominate her body & mind; Kate would have kicked his ass and left his bloody corpse for the bears.

The plot introduced all the park residents, an interesting mix characters and Kate's former boss and lover Jack plus her half wolf, half Husky. The murder mystery was engrossing with lots of surprises and twists. I am looking forward to listening to the entire series again.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Beatrice

Houston, TX, United States

01/09/14

Overall

Performance

Story

"A Cold Day for Murder"

Marguerite Gavin does a great job bring Kate Shugak to like. Kate is a realistic and sympathetic character that I enjoyed reading about. The plot was strong and well developed as was the other characters. There was enough twist and turns to keep you guessing through out the book. I ususally read light and cozy mysteries and this was a bit darker. I spent an entire day listening to it. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys mysteries.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Amazon Customer

Federal Way, Wa, United States

15/04/12

Overall

Performance

Story

"Really enjoyed this one."

This is the first book I've read in this series or even by this author for that matter. It won't be the last. I really enjoyed it. I'm just sorry I won't be able to get them all on audible. I really like the narrator also. Very nice job all the way around.

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

SMH

01/09/16

Overall

Performance

Story

"Gritty Realistic"

After living in Alaska for nearly 40 years and being away for 15, I enjoyed a visit back home through this book. That being said, the realism of the Alaskan Native struggle saddened me again as the author unfolded the story very well,I think, from the perspective of Kate Shugack,a well educated,strong Alaskan Native woman. I found the story gripping, exciting, and true to the Alaskan life style of the "bush" areas. I loved the characters who were so well developed that I thought I may have known some of them. The author is very well acquainted with what it means to be Alaskan, Native or white.If you are interested in a good mystery, in an exotic setting, this book is for you. Get your parka on, curl up to a warm fire, and enjoy a great, gritty, fast paced Alaskan adventure!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Chris

Milwaukee, WI, United States

13/07/16

Overall

Performance

Story

"Good Mysteries Thrillers read. Keeps you guessing"

Any additional comments?

Eighteen months ago, Aleut Kate Shugak quit her job investigating sex crimes for the Anchorage DA’s office and retreated to her father’s homestead in a national park in the interior of Alaska. But the world has a way of beating a path to her door, however remote. In the middle of one of the bitterest Decembers in recent memory ex-boss — and ex-lover — Jack Morgan shows up with an FBI agent in tow. A Park ranger with powerful relatives is missing, and now the investigator Jack sent in to look for him is missing, too.Reluctantly, Kate, along with Mutt, her half-wolf, half-husky sidekick, leaves her wilderness refuge to follow a frozen trail through the Park, twenty thousand square miles of mountain and tundra sparsely populated with hunters, fishermen, trappers, mushers, pilots and homesteaders. Her formidable grandmother and Native chief, Ekaterina Shugak, is — for reasons of her own — against Kate’s investigation; her cousin, Martin, may be Kate’s prime suspect; and the local trooper, Jim Chopin, is more interested in Kate than in her investigation. In the end, the sanctuary she sought after five and a half years in the urban jungles may prove more lethal than anything she left behind in the city streets of Anchorage

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Kelly

Colorado Springs

19/03/16

Overall

Performance

Story

"Alaska intrigues, Hope to learn more about Kate."

I like Kate, but I really wish there had been more exploration of her past in this book. Fleshing out her character would have guaranteed a fourth star overall. I hope that in the next novel we learn much more.

I really liked the setting. Alaska is almost another protagonist here and I love it. The descriptions of the way of life in the bush; the hardships of the cold; the loveliness of the park; the politics of the Aleut people versus the "greenies"... all of this made the book so much more intriguing than it might have been.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

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